Liberia Celebrates Global Hand Washing Day

By: WASH R&E “Media” Network  – Liberia joins the rest of the world on today (Tuesday, October 15) to observe Global Hand Washing Day. The Day is observed under the theme: “Clean hands save lives”.

Liberia Celebrates Global Hand Washing Day

Liberia Celebrates Global Hand Washing Day

Children wishing their hands, using soap and ash

Children wishing their hands, using soap and ash

October 15 each year is observed and celebrated as Global Hand Washing Day, reminding all of the importance of hand washing.

The celebration is basically aimed at raising awareness on the importance of hand washing to prevent diseases.

As part of Global Hand Washing Day, the Liberia WASH Consortium is encouraging Liberians to form a part of the campaign by sharing information on the health benefits of hand washing.

The Liberia WASH consortium in the release, noted that washing hands with soap or ash is one of the most effective and least expensive ways to prevent water borne diseases.

According to the Liberia WASH Consortium, hand washing with soap can help prevent diarrhea, pneumonia, and other diseases that prevent many children from reaching their 5th birthday.

“Children globally suffering disproportionately from diarrheal diseases-with more than 3.5 million children under five dying every year. The simple act of washing hands with soap/ash can reduce the incidence of diarrhea of rates among children under five by almost 50 percent, and respiratory infections by nearly 25 percent”, the Liberia WASH Consortium added.

The Liberia WASH Consortium also pointed out that together, soap/ash and water form a formidable ally in efforts to combat a host of other illness, such as helminthes,(warms), eye infections like trachoma, and skin infections like impetigo.

Each year, over 200 million people are involved in Global Hand Washing celebrations in over 100 countries around the world.

Since the commencement of Global Hand washing Day in 2008, designated as the International Year of Sanitation by the United Nations General Assembly, Global Hand Washing Day has been resounding and fortifying the call for enhanced hygiene practices worldwide.

The celebrations signify the yearly Global Hand washing Day, pointed at expanding cognizance and comprehension about the imperativeness of hand washing with cleanser, as a viable and reasonable approach to avert ailments.

Children wishing their hands, using soap and ash

Children wishing their hands, using soap and ash

Hand washing with cleanser is around the best and cheap approaches to forestall diarrheal ailments and pneumonia, which together are answerable for the greater part of youngster passings.

Kids going about as operators of progress, taking the exceptional practices of hygiene studied at school go into their homes and groups. The dynamic investment and association of youngsters, plus socially delicate neighborhood based mediations point at guaranteeing managed behavioral change.

The driving topic for Global Hand washing Day is kids and schools.

The Liberia Water, Sanitation & Hygiene (WASH) Consortium was set up in 2007 as a response to the poor WASH access, lack of harmonization and coordination in the sector, insufficient national policy frameworks and weak government capacities in Liberia.

The Liberia WASH Consortium is a group of five International Non-governmental Organisations, working with the government of Liberia to increase access to water, sanitation and hygiene services in Liberia’s 15 counties.

It was formed in 2007 by Oxfam GB, Action Contre la Faim, Concern Worldwide, Tearfund and Solidarities’ (now replaced by WaterAid) after consultations with the UK Department for International Development (DFID) and the Government of Liberia.

The Liberia WASH Consortium  strategic focus from 2007 to now is on the Provision of basic WASH services in rural and urban Liberia, National and local institutional capacity building for effective coordination and supervision, strengthening community structures and local actors for WASH facility sustainability, WASH policy and strategy development and Cholera preparedness and response, among others